The death of the apparent leader didn't put an end to the battle but it did create a panic among them that allowed many more to be cut down and break what confidence and moral they seemed to have for a few hours afterwards; the air filled with the smell of blood and burnt earth. It should have been over. He had admittedly hoped that the violent and gory way in which he had killed their leader would have been enough to end things Yet war is never so easy or swift with such convenient finality especially when the gods had It out for him. He knew if it was him their defeat would have been announced but they would not allow the same curtesy for his side, fires from the desperate armies joining together and others hoping his side had been worn down hoping to win for their own interests and gains ensured the battled continued for till the late evening. They kept coming like a relentless tide, a chaotic mix of close-range fanatics and long-range skirmishers as the various other forces who had held back took this opportunity to join together to try and be the victors.
John's own ranged units, those who splintered off proved to be a disciplined line amidst the chaos as they continued their deadly symphony, picking off targets with practiced precision and seemingly actively hunting the various enemy forces well Ray's own tried to provide protection and cover for the various mages and close-range combatants, acting with extreme caution. Around them, the beasts of his army rampaged, their primal roars echoing as they tore through enemy ranks in waves, torn apart, each dragon ork that went down would take a chunk of the attackers with them. The slimes though proved to be an eerie, silent counterpoint as they floated over the fallen or injured foes, using their barbed tendrils to pick up and absorb them with a disturbing efficiency as if cleaning up the battlefields, any who attempted to attack them meeting a similar fate as if there attacks where beyond there notice. Some grew subtly larger with each consumption, yet none displayed the same dramatic and terrifying transformations that had happened to the one dubbed as a Skull Slime. Even as the enemy numbers dwindled, their assassins remained a persistent threat to John and his forces, acting as shadowy blurs that slipping through the diminishing cover through shadows well striking whenever any opportunity presented itself to them before melting back into the gloom. Their attacks were less frequent now, more desperate as their own numbers dwindled but they still carried the potential for lethal surprises and eliminating various warriors, healers and mages before being injured or killed.
Overhead, the shimmering arc of their defensive shield flickered continuously, a testament to the lingering enemy ranged attacks still attempting to break it even as the attacks became less frequent and the artillery having long since stopped. Each flare marked a desperate, final volley hoping to bring about the victory they were so sure was there's hours before. John had already dispatched additional squads to hunt down and neutralize these distant threats, now having the ability to spare some of the forces to do so now that the number and groups of attackers began to thin out. The war had now become one of attrition as it began to slow down to agonizing degree. Three more grueling hours dragged by, each filled with the dying gasps of the conflict and the methodical elimination of the last pockets of resistance forces who tried to swarm in or hide in the remaining structures in hopes of looting what they could after the battle or to strike at Johns forces for any possible benefits it could award them.
Soon the loud ethereal voice boomed across the battlefield, a declaration that felt both surreal and long overdue.
A collective sigh of relief rippled through John's exhausted forces, followed by a fragile, tentative cheer that quickly swelled into a roar of triumph as the attackers began to disappear into smokey streaks, some mid attack. The announcement's patronizing undertone, particularly the veiled warning, did little to dampen the raw surge of relief and exhilaration that flooded through all of them. They had won. The underdogs had prevailed.
As if on cue, the magnificent, ethereal serpent grew thicker in the sky, shimmering brighter and brighter as it coiled with terrible grace around the monstrous wolf that had been the symbol of their enemy, biting and devouring it bit by bit well growing larger even larger till it was the only thing remaining in the sky. The wolf, a symbol of brute strength and aggression, was devoured by the snake which swam excitedly around their base, raising its head to the sky before letting out a large blast from its mouth causing glittering motes of light to shoot through the sky like fireworks. It was a potent and dramatic conclusion, proof of their hard-fought victory.
John, however, merely grunted, a cynical "Tsk, damn bastards," escaping his lips as the last of the enemies were smoked away. He didn't trust the ones who gave the announcement. "Everyone, keep your guard up! Just because they said it's over doesn't mean it is. Stay vigilant for stragglers as we start the cleanup operation now. They say the attackers will be taken away but it just means those who weren't part of the war could have snuck in and try to use this as a way to spy after the war, strike at us or just loot and rob us." His voice, though weary, carried the unyielding command of a reluctant leader.
"I want a large group to go with Kay and Z to Begin salvage operations. Collect anything and everything possible from the fallen enemies, strip them bare. Once we confirm that were clear of all enemy presence, I want our own fallen to be taken to the center of the base. Necromancers! I want any and all enemy bodies after being stripped to be raised until each and every one of you is at your limit, they will be our labor and aids in cleaning up but make sure to not push yourselves to hard though or leave yourselves vulnerable. Once that grim task is complete and our own have been gathered, we will pay our respects to the fallen and ensure we see them off properly."
He paused, a flicker of cold resolve hardening his eyes as he seemed to consider what to say next. "We will then take a three-day reprieve. Three days to rest, to mourn and to take stock of our numbers. After that, we will move forward, we will begin to plan and we will ensure they pay for their actions. They don't get to strike us and expect us to just take it without any form of retaliation. Regardless of the benefits offered to them they will see there is consequences for their actions. Also, I wish to say thank you, to each and every one of you, I know I am your leader, your master or your lord and your forced to follow me, but for fighting so valiantly, violently and for one another, I you have my thanks and gratitude." John's declaration hung in the air, a promise of future retribution followed by words of gratitude they had not expected and where unsure on how to feel regarding it. He soon returned to coordinating the overwhelming post-battle logistics, his shoulders slumping slightly with a tired sigh as the weight of command begun pressing down on him. The immediate triumph overshadowed by the grim reality of the aftermath and the strategic necessities of survival, doing all he could to keep himself together and not breakdown.
"You really did well, you know." Ash's voice, soft and deeply tired, drifted towards him as she walked in with Saya at her side supporting her.
He gave them a single glance before silently walking out the tent and looking at that at the rows of bodies already being carefully laid out by his soldiers. Their fallen, their comrades. "Let's see if you can still say that after we take stock of our losses, we even lost Choi…" he replied, his voice rough with exhaustion and a deep-seated guilt.
Saya stepped closer. "It wasn't your fault. We didn't expect assassins to be able to slip in."
"But I should have," John countered, running a hand through his hair, "I didn't think they could get past the radar function so I overlooked it as something that could happen. If nothing else, we got luckier than anything this time. Maybe I pushed too far too quickly. Maybe if I had built things up first like I originally planned instead of pushing my luck like this…" He shook his head.
"The blood of all those who died is on my hands, both our enemies and our own. I mean I want to make them bleed; to crush those gods and their forces but did I let my friends cloud my judgement and rush to fast into all this? And if so, what does that makes me? How can I trust myself if I let others so easily influence my actions?" His voice was a raw and heavy with the burden of his choices. The sheer scale of the deaths, even those of their enemies, weighed heavily on his conscious, a mark of humanity that set him apart from the hardened and altered souls around him well making him wonder why he had allowed himself to be so easily swayed.
Saya's eyes softened as she looked at him. "It makes you human. More human than the rest of us, you can still feel the weight of your actions and even if your patron god did it as a joke it's more a blessing than anything else, it means you're still a good person. The rest of us? We could slit a person's throat and feel nothing except possibly some satisfaction if it was something we wanted to do. We could kill them slowly, meticulously and not bat an eye. In some ways, Ash and I no longer even feel human due to the cold detachment that has become our default state in regards to others. We still know what we should feel but we just can't feel it, not like we used to, not like you."
She paused, her gaze distant, as if recalling forgotten sensations. "Choi, well not with our group as long as me or Ash was someone who became close to our group and proved to a valuable member of our inner circle, someone we could trust. But do you know what we feel for his death? At losing him? Nothing more than a bit of pain and annoyance that we lost someone so valuable and this pragmatic question of how we will operate now without him taking the reins. There are no major feelings of profound loss, no shattering grief making us want to shed tears." She said before taking a deep breath, almost hesitant to say this next part but feeling it was needed to be said "If we were to lose you John? Well, I think I speak for both myself and Ash but we would deeply feel it, there would be this void left behind that would resonate more than anything else. I doubt it would be as muted as it is when it comes to others but even then, it wouldn't be enough to shatter us. We are simply… differently now. It's something you need to come to grips with and stop ignoring when it comes to me and everyone else. I won't lie though, I fucken hate it! But I can't change it…" Her words had him turn to look at her, his gaze turning away from the bodies to see Ash nodding along with a pained and sad look on her face.
Saya looked back at him, her expression firm. "You, though? You are still fully human, your still capable of feeling the crushing weight of your actions and thinking with your heart, unlike the rest of us. It's why you are the perfect leader for us." At this she lightly took one of his hands into hers as Ash came over and took the other. "You still possess the empathy, the compassion and even the doubt that we've lost and can't feel anymore as anything but a faint echo. Those aren't weaknesses; they are your greatest strengths and what will make you the absolute best leader there will ever be in this world."
He looked at her, then back at the silent forms of the fallen. "And what about the mistakes it could lead me to make?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper, a visible weight settling onto his shoulders. "Actions brought about by such losses, by my own emotional responses? What if I lash out or let a loss cloud my actions again? What if that very same empathy and emotions end up costing me something important or worse?"
"Then learn from those mistakes," Saya stated simply, her logic as clear and cutting as glass. "If it were us, we would simply send everyone straight at them, marching a counter attack right this moment without a care for how they might feel and without a care for losses as long as they take down as many enemies with them as possible. Our actions would justify every loss as being worth it as long as they took enemies down with them as we kept sending them forward well standing at the back. But throughout this entire war, you were constantly active in some way, you constantly evaluated each side of battle and gave your point of view on things even well you let the various leaders fulfill their roles, and before Choi was taken out, you were keeping track of the various fights and activities, helping to adjust strategies when present and when you weren't you were out trying to help wherever you could, I watched you handing out potions to the mages at one point and I also saw you in the medic's area trying to find some way to help the injured. Even afterwards, you tried to limit our own losses as best you could well filling Choi's position, refusing to let the chain of command break. And now at the end of the war you even gave the order for the bodies of our own fallen to be moved and shown respect well planning on how to give them a proper send off. Look at yourself properly, even now your first priority is making plans for the fallen rather than trying to press forward or rest. If it were us, we would have probably just left them and continued on by sending whatever forces we had left to attack our attackers without rest or just calling it a day and getting some rest after ordering for all the bodies to be burnt or buried and the area cleaned up. You though continue to show your humanity with your actions and choices."
From his other side, Ash gently let go of his hand before hugging him, burying her face into his shoulder. "She's right. You don't see it like we do. You still feel how we used to feel. I really envy that…" Her voice was muffled, but resolute. "Choosing to act early rather than later was the right call. It put us on the offensive and probably threw them off balance, preventing them from fully consolidating their forces or building an even bigger army. This victory also unequivocally showed our strength, our ruthlessness and our capability. It will draw other enemies at us but also ended up weakening them rather than us and it will make negotiating with the other powers easier and possibly even draw in many refugees seeking a safe haven away from the other forces. It was the right call to do this, the pros outweigh the cons and we're reaping the benefits and will keep reaping them."
Ash lifted her head, her gaze bright with new purpose trying to help bring things to a better note. "You said that warlord guy would only agree to terms if we won this war, right? Well, I think more of his forces attacked us than he initially thought. We now have an upper hand when dealing with him. We can maybe even force him to work under us now or absorb his remaining forces completely like the fire nation did the earth kingdom in avatar rather than having him as a partner. And then we can continue to properly spread out, taking over and crushing everyone else around us well we cement our dominance across this entire region. At least there should be less bloodshed this way, right? Having won this should have shaken them and cause them to act smarter now that they know where stronger than they could have ever known, if anything they might even actively come to us now to try and negotiate some kind of alliances."
"Hopefully, I really do it goes smoother from here on out," John said softly weighing her words, the weariness still present, but now tinged with a fragile hope. Saya, in turn held him tighter on the other side.
"Just keep being true to yourself." Saya murmured, pressing her head gently against his arm. "Keep pushing us all forward. You're our leader, and as we already told you, we couldn't ask for or hope for anyone better."
"Our fearless leader," Ash added, her voice a warm comfort.
Gently, John wrapped his arms around the two, holding them close. In their unwavering belief, in their comforting presence, he found a small but much-needed reservoir of solace and strength. The weight of victory was heavy, but he was not alone in carrying it. Unnoticed though was how Saya seemed to look past him, her gaze turning to a faint shadow that seemed to try and reach out towards them only to quickly fade away as it seemed to hold itself back, a pair of bright yellow eyes filled with something she couldn't place and a wide sharp toothed grin fading with it.